Reviews

Fevers and Mirrors

5/29/2000 | Aquarius Records New Release | Album Review

BRIGHT EYES "Fevers and Mirrors" (Saddle Creek) cd 14.98
The newest full length from Bright Eyes begins with a lone guitar and the spoken words of a child, rather reminiscent of 'Dear God' by XTC, but don't let that first taste send you down the wrong path. Certainly this is music of disappointment and dismay, but far from the melodramatic. Mournful, searching melodies fleshed out with the sounds of accordion, piano, mellotron, pedal steel, vibraphone, and the fragile, hoarse voice of Conor Oberst, who sings as if there were a gun held up to his head. This is perfect for slumping on a bar stool when life's dealt you a bad hand... that is, until track 3 when you decide to launch your pint straight at the wall or someone's head. Quite possibly Bright Eyes best work to date complete with beautiful mirror cover art. "Like a dream they came to cure the fever of my brain, and sooth my burning throat." A lovely downer of an album. For fans of the more stripped down side of Built to Spill.